President Abraham Lincoln’s letter to Lydia Bixby

On this day in 1864, it is believed that President Lincoln wrote a letter to Lydia Bixby, mother of five men who had been killed in the Civil War. It expressed condolences to Mrs. Bixby on the death of her five sons. Historians are not sure about the letter. It may have been written by John Jay, his secretary. Nevertheless, it became famous when it was featured in “Saving Private Ryan“, a war film from 1998.